Eliminates mandated housing densities/density bonuses for public drinking water supply watersheds/groundwater. Requires densities not exceed water availability, introduce pollution, stay within public water or sewer system capacity limits.

Plain-English Summary

This bill would change Rhode Island's housing law to remove requirements that towns and cities build housing at certain minimum densities — or offer "density bonuses" (extra units beyond normal limits) — in areas that are near or part of public drinking water sources, such as watersheds and groundwater supplies. Currently, state law encourages or requires higher-density housing development in some areas as a way to increase affordable housing availability, but this bill would create an exception for locations where drinking water is at risk.

Under the bill, any new housing development near these protected water areas would need to meet three key conditions: the number of homes built cannot exceed what the local water supply can actually support, the development cannot introduce pollution into drinking water sources, and the project must stay within the capacity of existing public water and sewer systems. In other words, the availability of clean water and infrastructure would set the ceiling for how much housing can be built in these sensitive areas.

This bill primarily affects towns and cities that have drinking water watersheds or groundwater supplies within their borders, as well as housing developers who may currently rely on state density requirements or bonuses to build more units in those areas. It could also affect residents who depend on those water sources for safe drinking water. Local governments would have more flexibility to limit housing density in these zones based on environmental and infrastructure concerns.

The bill was referred to the Senate Housing and Municipal Government Committee, which recommended holding it for further study, meaning it has not yet moved forward to a vote.